I love entertaining! Whether it is just a few girlfriends or several couples. I also like it to look a little different every time but with out spending too much money.
Right before we sold our first house I had several girlfriends over for a paint party. We were going to be on our covered back patio, because – let’s face it, paint!
Here’s my huge secret on outdoor entertaining….
GO TO THE DOLLAR STORE!!!
Yes, the dollar store. You can get awesome dinnerware there. And who cares if it breaks, IT WAS ONE DOLLAR! Make sure you keep to a color theme with the dinnerware. If one breaks, you don’t have to have an exact match, it just needs to fit the color theme you are sticking to. I chose white, black and green. Pretty simple and you can always find white.
For table covers, I used two square of brown butcher paper for each rectangle table. We were going to be eating then painting, and it made for easy cleanup. This party was around Thanksgiving so I took a black sharpie and wrote around the edges, “Grateful, Thankful and Blessed”.
For food, don’t always feel like you have to feed an army. People take ownership in the event when they are asked to bring something. For this specific event, I asked each woman to bring their favorite finger food – savory or sweet. It was a hit! I provided these chicken Parmesan sandwiches and my favorite party tea, recipe as follows:
Party Tea
-One bottle diet ginger ale
-One package of Crystal Light Peach Tea
Mix the two together and serve over ice!
I also gave away little party favors. Dollar Store, again, mugs! I created stencils with holiday themed words, traced it with a sharpie and then baked the mug in the oven to seal it. They were loved by all!
It was a wonderful night and much fun was had by all!
building spencer 